Colorado Referee Committee Policy Number: 003 Effective Date: USSF Registration Year 2016 Revised: N/A

Match Priority for Referee Assignments

Purpose and Scope: This policy describes the order of precedence for referee appointments and assignments. The purpose of the order of precedence is to establish which matches take priority over other matches. The policy updates the order of precedence for referee appointments described in the Referee Administrative Handbook, last published by the United States Soccer Federation (USSF) in 2011. The handbook was replaced by a link to the administration page of the US Soccer website (the order of precedence listed therein effectively mirrors the policy statement below). The policy applies to any referee or assignor registered with the Federation by the State of Colorado. Additional Authority: Federation Policy 531-11. Responsible Parties: State Referee Administrator (SRA) and State Director of Assignment.

Policy Statement Each USSF referee registered by the State of Colorado is expected to abide by and respect the Code of Ethics for the Federation Referee Program (contained in Section 4 of USSF Policy 531-11) and honor all assignments that he or she accepts. However, there are certain occasions when a referee should (and, at times, must) be released from a lower-level assignment and accept an assignment at a higher level of competition in the interests of both the Federation and the State of Colorado. Therefore, the Colorado Referee Committee adopts the following order of precedence for match assignments: 1. All FIFA appointments; 2. All CONCACAF appointments; 3. International matches or Senior National Team matches assigned by US Soccer; 4. Matches assigned by the Professional Referee Organization (PRO), including Major League Soccer (MLS), North American Soccer League (NASL), United Soccer League (USL), National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), and US Open Cup; 5. Youth National Team matches assigned by US Soccer; 6. National and regional competition matches (adult and youth) assigned by a US Soccer-affiliated member, including but not limited to United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA), US Youth Soccer, US Specialty Sports Association (USSSA), and US Club Soccer; 7. League matches (including US Soccer Development Academy matches) assigned by US Soccer or the Local Area Coordinator (LAC); 8. State Cup Competition matches (adult and youth) and President’s Cup Competition matches (youth) assigned by a US Soccer-affiliated member.

With the exception of competition levels listed on the preceding page, no other match has assignment priority or precedence over any other match within the State of Colorado, and referees may not turn back an accepted match in order to officiate a different match. In addition, the turning back or refusal to accept US Soccer-affiliated matches in order to accept unaffiliated matches may result in disciplinary action under this policy. This priority policy does not apply in either of two circumstances: Within seventy-two (72) hours of the scheduled kickoff time unless there is justifiable and good cause or unless an emergency situation exists, or When a substantial financial commitment has been made for the referee assignment (for example, non-refundable airline tickets). Referees traveling out-of-state for National or International appointments may travel the day before and after the days of such matches if necessary, and are excused from all other assignments on those days. Referees may not accept another assignment on the day of a National or International match appointment without permission of the Federation. It is also the responsibility of officials to: Communicate with their existing assignor about potential International or National appointment conflicts as far in advance as possible, Notify their existing assignor immediately upon receipt of a higher-priority match appointment, and Report any assignor that refuses to release the official from a lower-priority assignment to their SRA. This policy only applies only to USSF-affiliated and sanctioned matches. It does not apply to unaffiliated matches associated with other soccer governing bodies such as the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), or National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA).

Approved by:

______4/21/2016______Neal E. Fausset Date State Referee Administrator

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